Sway
Sway is a Bay Area-based startup that creates flexible thin film packaging from seaweed. This innovative Circular Material is a home and industrial compostable replacement for single-use packaging. The material utilises regenerative design to replenish the social & ecological systems harmed by petroleum plastics.
Production process
Sway sources seaweed cultivated by regenerative ocean farms. Farmers harvest and dry the seaweed, then sell to biorefineries who treat it with an alkali process to extract the polysaccharides agar, alginate, or carrageenan — AKA gelling agents that are widely used to enhance the texture of everyday products (like toothpaste!). Sway blends this new powder form with biobased plasticizers and a few other natural additives into a substance that is shaped, dried into a film roll, and sent to a packaging converter for final touches, where it seamlessly integrates with existing machinery.
Material properties
-Fully biobased
-Majority (~80%) seaweed
-Home + industrially compostable
-Highly customizable in color, texture, and transparency
-Low permeability to air and oil
-High tensile strength
-Heat-sealable
-Nontoxic
-Plastic & microplastic free
Circular features
Sway shifts reliance from petroleum toward seaweed: a regenerative crop that gives more
than it takes. Seaweed is the basis of all Sway material formulations, which can mimic the compelling qualities of plastic without the downsides. Unlike plastic, Sway products are designed to last only as long as they’re needed, and decompose rapidly in home and industrial compost environments offering valuable nutrients for soil in their degradation. Better yet, seaweed is an abundant, regenerative resource that requires no land, fresh water, or fertilizer to grow. Specifically, Sway partners with communities that have been severely affected by global overfishing and changing ecologies. Cultivating seaweed is inexpensive, requires no pesticides or fertilizers, and demands little equipment — plus it grows up to 60 times faster than land-based crops, making for abundant harvests.
Raw Materials
Seaweed
Afterlife Plan
Sway’s products are home-compostable. If home compost is not available, industrial composting is the next best option.
Supplier
Image source: Sway